| From The Newspaper (4) Mind |
October 13, 2022
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| "Osaka won by default, proceeding to the second round ~Toray Ladies Tennis Match." The news article, with a picture attached, read that on the second day of Toray Pan Pacific Open at Tokyo Ariake Tennis-no-Mori Park, in the first round of the ladies' single matches, Naomi Osaka, former World Ranked No.1, now No.48, has proceeded to the second round by default, Daria Saville from Australia, the No. 55 ranked player, had an accident. In the picture, Osaka was putting a towel on Saville, who was lying on the court. The article explained that Saville accidentally fell and got injured. It happened only 14 minutes after the game had started. Osaka immediately approached her with a towel. Osaka became a winner for the first time in her last five competitions. The article also had Osaka's comments about the game, which was held for the first time in three years with spectators because of the COVID-19 pandemic. She  said, "I feel that it has been a very long time (to have games without spectators). I want to thank the people who came out to see this late game." The article closed with the author stating, "Her comments show her gentle personality."But, when he read this article, his feelings were a little bit different. Two days later, 4 hours before the second game, Osaka's manager announced her withdrawal because of a stomachache. Maybe she didn't consider how spectators had a hard time getting her ticket, or how much they looked forward to watching her game. It was three years ago, in 2019, when Osaka became the No.1 World Ranked tennis player. She was only 20 years old. A lot of tennis fans thought that her era had come. But, it didn't. After about a half a year or so later, her ranking started to drop. Especially this year, it once dropped down to No.85! Her mental weakness was sometimes talked about in the media. One time she was heckled by one of the spectators, a female voice shouted from the stands, "Naomi, you suck!" After that she looked very upset and finally lost the game. She sometimes shed tears during the game. On the other hand, she showed a strong-will towards the Black Lives Matter issue. During some games she wore caps or masks on which had a black person's name, who was a victim of social discrimination. She also boycotted an interview after a game at the French Open. The tournament's authorities warned her about it, but she didn't change her attitude, which was a statement about protecting players' rights. She stated that after a tough game, waiting until night and attending an interview is too stressful for players. For him, her being defeated was like she had stumbled on her own dress and fell. She is young, and has a strong body. She has been skillful in her long career since childhood. At first, he thought that she should have had a better coach who would support her properly. But, after checking on the internet, he learned that she has changed coaches a lot, and all her coaches were experienced and skillful, and were of good character. Next, he thought that her parents might have spoiled her. But, recently he watched a TV program in which her mother talked about the family's efforts to make her a top athlete. When she was very young, her father coached her. As she got older, he gave her as many chances as he could. They started to live in America. He chose the best, although expensive, coaches. The mother was a frank person, and their tough story was moving. Recently, he had a chance to watch "Borg McEnroe". It was a great Swedish movie released in 2017. The first scene was the day before the final game of Wimbledon, it was Borg VS McEnroe. Borg suffered from the pressure of being ranked the No.1 male tennis player for a long time, and his core fans were hysterical about him. On the other hand, McEnroe was hated by spectators. He shouted against the judges for a misjudgement call, and shouted against spectators' booing. The movie showed how those two passed their young days. It was a hard time for these two talented people. After the movie, he realized that no outsider could understand top athletes. They have their own pressures and their own difficulties. But, he hoped that Osaka would concentrate only on her games, and end up having self-satisfaction after the match, in which she and her opponent gave it their all. |
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No. 491
*durable goods :耐久消費財
*allocate :分配する
*indisp*default :棄権
*heckle :ヤジを飛ばす
*stumble :つまづく
*spoil :甘やかす